


Calculated Risks

by rowenablade



Series: MCU Kink Bingo Fills [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Anger, Angst, Brief description of violence, Bruce Banner & Tony Stark Friendship, Bruce Banner Needs a Hug, I tried to write porn and this happened, I'm so sorry, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Infidelity, Jealousy, Just to be clear neither Bruce or Tony is the abuser in the above tag, M/M, Past Abuse, Secret Relationship, The Author Regrets Everything, Tony Stark Has Issues, i'm not that evil
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:14:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26088508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rowenablade/pseuds/rowenablade
Summary: Bruce Banner is smart. Everyone knows that, particularly Bruce himself. Bruce knew what he was getting into when he fell into bed with Tony Stark.
Relationships: Bruce Banner/Tony Stark
Series: MCU Kink Bingo Fills [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1887520
Comments: 10
Kudos: 50
Collections: MCU Kink Bingo Round 5





	Calculated Risks

Bruce Banner is smart. Everyone knows that, particularly Bruce himself. Bruce knew what he was getting into when he fell into bed with Tony Stark.

Metaphorically speaking, that is. They actually never made it to the bed, that first time. A suite in Vegas, one of Tony’s many roosts that he goes to when either coast becomes too hot to hold him, immaculate and sterile as any laboratory Bruce had worked in. They’d done the Strip the first night, and then the next day Bruce had woken up knowing he couldn’t take another sixteen hours of clattering coins and flashing lights, had told Tony to go solo for the night. Instead Tony had stayed in, ordered sushi and eaten it with Bruce on the living room floor while they talked about New York, exes, college, their parents, the latest R&D breakthroughs at Stark Industries. He’d known the moment that Tony was going to lean over and kiss him just before it happened. It was nearly mathematical in its inevitability. 

\--

_”Why?” Bruce asks, the only question he’s able to stammer out in the face of Tony’s famous, mega-watt playboy grin._

_“Seriously?” Tony answers, cupping the back of Bruce’s head to pull him closer. “Come on, big guy. Look at you.”_

_And for once, Bruce is satisfied with not understanding._

\--

Bruce is smart. He knows the kind of man that Tony is. He knows that Tony likes to _give_ , but he also likes to _have_. He knows that Tony collects things; art, cars, beautiful people of whatever sex he’s in the mood for at the moment. He knows Tony doesn’t want to hurt anyone, but he also doesn’t slow down for people, and if you don’t have your baggage stowed as securely as he does when you strap in for the ride, you’re likely to end up with bits and pieces of yourself smashed against the walls. 

Bruce knows what kind of person Tony is. He knows that Tony is nervous, the most nervous person Bruce has ever known. There’s something in Tony that never sits still, that taps and twitches and sends electric impulses from his incredible brain to the tips of his fingers that make him need to touch everything. Bruce knows that Tony started drinking to help himself sleep three years before he threw his first house party. He knows that Tony will chatter from the first brush of fingertips right on through the afterglow if you let him, but absolutely melts if you pull his hair.

Bruce is smart. It’s the Other Guy who’s an idiot.

The Other Guy doesn’t understand how people like Tony do things. Powerful, famous men who need to appear a certain way to Middle America need to keep their distance in public. Need to flirt, need to buy drinks for pretty young things, need to splash that million-dollar smile all over the streets, not save it for one person. Bruce gets that. It’s the Other Guy whose gut twists when someone else puts their hand on the back of Tony’s neck and whispers something in his ear. It’s the Other Guy who grinds his teeth at night when three days pass without a text, then five, then a week, then two weeks. It’s the Other Guy who wants to throw his arms around Tony in the middle of some press conference and roar _Mine_ into all those greedy, expectant faces.

It’s not Bruce. It’s the Other Guy. The dumb one. The one who doesn’t understand how things need to be.

\--

_”Nuh-uh,” Tony grunts as soon as Bruce moves to flip him over. “Want to look at you.”_

_Bruce freezes with his hands on Tony’s waist and tries to get his head around that statement. “O-kay,” he manages. “We can, uh, we can do that.”_

_“Hey.” Tony’s voice is soft. He’s already made Bruce come once and he’s not even breathing hard. “You sure you’re alright?”_

_“Yeah.” Bruce looks at a spot over Tony’s shoulder, too embarrassed for eye contact. “I’m not, uh, gonna turn green. I’ve got that under control.”_

_“Good to know, but not what I was asking.” Tony sits up, presses their foreheads together. “Are _you_ alright?”_

_Tony’s not scared of him. Bruce still doesn’t understand that, doesn’t understand what he did to deserve to kiss this brave, beautiful man, doesn’t understand a universe in which_ Tony Stark _wraps his legs around Bruce’s hips and whispers, “Please.”_

_Bruce is smart, but this is beyond his ability to comprehend._

\--

It’s the Other Guy who won’t let Bruce sleep, knowing that Tony is on some hotel floor with someone else. Bruce overhears two interns telling a joke about Tony, and the Other Guy wants to smash their work station into fine fiberglass powder. The Other Guy checks Bruce’s phone two times, three times, ten times over the twelve minutes it takes Bruce to buy lunch, throw his takeout sushi container away mostly untouched and stalk back to the lab. 

One by one, people make their excuses to continue their work on another floor. Bruce is alone in the lab after ten minutes. Several people call in sick the next day, just in case.

\--

_”Two sprained fingers, a chipped tooth, and a hairline fracture in my jaw,” Tony says, pointing with his chopsticks, presumably where said fracture once was. “Lost my appetite after that. Not for boys, obviously. Just…boyfriends.”_

_“Did he go to jail?” Bruce asks, trying to look everywhere but at Tony’s face. If he looks at Tony’s face he’s afraid he’ll picture a fist smashing into it, and just the thought of that makes the Other Guy growl somewhere deep inside._

_Tony laughs. “Obadiah paid the rest of his tuition to keep him quiet. Pretty sure he lives in Malibu these days. In hindsight, it was a good thing I learned to avoid the jealous type early. Probably saved Stark Industries a quarter-billion dollars in hush money over the years.”_

_Bruce can’t think of a single thing to say to that. He drains the last of his bottle of Kirin and looks at the floor._

_“You’re not the jealous type, are you?”_

_Bruce looks up. Tony is smiling his famous smile._

_What the hell else is he supposed to say?_

\--

After three days in which Bruce has had the entire thirty-third floor of Stark Tower pretty much to himself, he gets a text.

_Sorry for the radio silence. Crazy week. Back in town tomorrow. Drinks?_

The letters seem to wobble on the screen. Bruce’s hand is shaking. He bites down hard on a rush of adrenaline, waits for green to bloom across his skin. A second passes, and it doesn’t. Three seconds pass, and it doesn’t. Ten seconds. Thirty.

False alarm.

He hits “Reply”. Types, _Sure. What time?_ Doesn’t hit “Send”. Holds the phone in his hand. Watches the letters wobble as if in a heat haze.

Tony is smart. Tony is brave. Tony knew what he was getting into. Didn’t he?

Bruce types, _Sorry, tomorrow’s no good. See you in lab Monday?_ Hits “Send”.

A minute passes in which Bruce can hear the Other Guy’s heartbeat pounding, pounding in his ears.

 _Sure,_ says the new text that pops up. _Let me know if you change your mind._

Bruce doesn’t respond. He turns off his phone, shoves it in his pocket, and gets back to work. By Monday this place will be bustling, once people have decided for whatever reason that it’s safe to be around him again. He should take advantage of the quiet while he can. 

Bruce Banner fell in love with Tony Stark.

Bruce Banner is an idiot.


End file.
